Tianjin Eco-city signs 6 new investment deals

The signing of the joint venture agreement between Keppel Integrated Engineering Limited and Tianjin Eco-City Investment and Development Co. Ltd. (Credit: Keppel Group)

TIANJIN: Tianjin Eco-city has signed six new investment deals and secured strategic partnerships, bringing in total new investments amounting to about 500 million yuan.

Singapore Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong witnessed the signing ceremony in Tianjin on Sunday.

Companies involved in the signing include General Motors, Keppel Integrated Engineering, LHT Holdings, Panasonic, Philips, and Sky Communication.

The new investments are said to be able to bring additional job opportunities and economic vibrancy to the Eco-city.

As strategic partners, Philips, General Motors, and Panasonic will help to shape the implementation of eco-technology.

Senior Minister Goh also officiated at the groundbreaking ceremony of Keppel's Seasons City.

To be developed in phases, the first phase includes an office development and retail premises.

Describing the Eco-city's construction as amazing, Mr Goh said that in a few years' time, emphasis should be placed on the city's soft management.

He said: "As for going forward, the whole idea of the Eco-city is that it should be replicable and scalable, which means that what we are doing over here can be done in other parts of China, so this project should not be seen in isolation.

"It should be holding lessons for other cities which want to develop along what you call ecological lines. So that is the feature we are emphasising for the Eco-city."

Other Singapore features to be included in the Eco-city include public housing.

Mr Goh said: "You have to look at the income of the buyers, and when they buy, they cannot sell to anybody else after that and make a huge profit. They have to sell to people who are eligible to buy public housing. So in that sense, that is the feature of Singapore public housing."

Apart from Singapore, Mr Goh said the Eco-city can also borrow from the experiences of China's coastal cities, such as those located along the Pearl River Delta.

Cities such as Shenzhen and Zhuhai are now suffering from outdated, labour-intensive and low-technology industries.

And this is something that the Eco-city should be mindful of when it comes to planning for its long term development.

Mr Goh also made it clear that the Eco-city should set the standard for others to follow, and that more pro-green business incentives will soon be introduced.

- CNA/ac/ms